Gowanus Doll-Maker To Sell Mini 'P---- Hats'

GOWANUS, BROOKLYN — A Gowanus-based doll-maker will be bringing the fashion of the Women's March On Washington down to a much smaller scale.

Hazel Village, which sells hand-crafted animal dolls and accessories to dress them up, is making mini versions of the "p---- hat" — the pointy, pink hat that became famous following President Trump's inauguration and the protests that followed.

Hazel Village founder Jane Van Cleef told Patch that she knitted a hat for herself for the March on Washington, then got the idea to put one on a doll.

Van Cleef made the first mini-hat for a special edition of her "Gracie Cat" doll. The doll is being auctioned on the "Still We Rise" Instagram account to benefit the ACLU. Bidding was up to $275 by 2:30 P.M. on Thursday.

The response to the doll's hat was so popular, Van Cleef said, that she decided to sell them individually. The proceeds from the hats will also benefit the ACLU.

“Our business puts us in a situation where it’s kind of a love fest of moms and babies, loves of brothers and sisters, love the kid has for their doll, that’s sort of how we roll," Van Cleef said.

“So it’s important for us to support family-based charities and groups. The Women’s March in general and the work that the ACLU is doing to protect the civil rights of refugees seems in line with that."

But the positive reaction wasn't universal.

“Not everybody who shops from us has the same politics," she said. "We did upset some people, but it seems worth saying something, to me, so we did it. A lot of our supporters, too, are pretty happy and into it.”

The hats are made to fit Hazel Village dolls but could, in theory, be used on other ones, too. Van Cleef is also planning on putting the pattern for the hat online so people can make their own.

They can be purchased online or from the storefront on Third Avenue between 11th and 12th streets.

Images courtesy of Hazel Village